Aug. 25 (Bloomberg) -- An alliance of Islamist militias
said it wrested control of Tripoli’s international airport from
a rival force after weeks of fighting that triggered an exodus
of foreigners and threatened to plunge Libya deeper into chaos.

Libya’s defunct, Islamist-dominated parliament said it
would temporarily resume its sessions, the state-run Libya News
Agency reported, a move that may set the stage for dueling
legislatures amid a leadership vacuum.

The fighting has battered Libya, undercut efforts to revive
oil output in the OPEC member and dimmed hopes for a transition
to democracy. It has sparked concern the nation, led by a
largely toothless central government, will descend into anarchy
and emerge as little more than a failed state controlled by
militias.

The announcement of the airport’s capture by Fajr Libya, or
Libya Dawn, came hours after warplanes struck Islamists near and
around the airport, killing at least 13 people and wounding 30
others, the independent Al Nabaa television reported. It wasn’t
clear who was behind the air strike, the second of its kind in
about a week. Libya Dawn blamed Egypt and the United Arab
Emirates. Both nations denied involvement.

‘Completely Cleansed’

The statement on Libya Dawn’s Facebook page said its
“lions” charged the airport and “entered its halls and it’s
been completely cleansed of all criminals.” The Islamist
group’s spokesman, Mohamed Ghariani, told Al Nabaa that the
militia was in control of most locations in Tripoli, including
the Interior Ministry near the airport. The claims couldn’t be
independently verified and the government hasn’t commented. The
group later denied reports by the Arabiya satellite television
channel that the airport had been set ablaze.

The month-old battle for Tripoli’s airport pits the
Islamist-dominated forces, led by fighters from the coastal city
of Misrata, against a militia from the northwestern Zintan
region and its allies. The Zintan militants, who have controlled
the airport since the 2011 ouster and killing of Muammar
Qaddafi, is allied with renegade General Khalifa Haftar, who had
been battling Islamists in the eastern city of Benghazi. In all,
more than 200 people have been killed and hundreds of others
wounded.

Legislative Duel

A new parliament that took over from the interim General
National Congress has been meeting in the east, despite boycotts
from the Islamists who dominated the old legislature. In a
statement issued today, the GNC’s spokesman, Omar Hamidan, said
the parliament that was based in Tripoli will not “leave the
country to fall prey” to “division, chaos and a political and
constitutional vacuum,” LANA reported.

The prospect of rival legislatures only adds to the woes of
a country that sits atop Africa’s largest proven reserves of
crude oil. Islamists have spun the violence as an attempt by
pro-Qaddafi elements and foreign powers -- Egypt and Gulf Arab
nations -- to undermine the goals of the 2011 uprising. Their
opponents maintain the Islamists are trying to hijack the
revolution to realize their own political ambitions.

The political disputes echo on the streets in Tripoli and
Benghazi, the country’s second-largest city, in clashes between
rival militias.

The unrest has hurt Libya’s health care system, created
daily power and water cuts, forced embassies to suspend
operations and evacuate staff, and left Tripoli’s international
airport in shambles.

Worried Neighbors

Algeria, Tunisia and Egypt are boosting security along
their borders with Libya, and Cairo is hosting a meeting of
Libya’s neighbors tomorrow to discuss the situation.

Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, speaking to editors
of local media, denied his country was involved militarily in
Libya, saying Egypt hasn’t conducted any operations outside its
borders “until now.” Egypt’s Foreign Ministry condemned the
reported execution of an Egyptian man who was shown in a YouTube
video being shot in the eastern Islamist stronghold of Derna
after being accused of murder.

The U.A.E.’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar
Gargash, tweeted that an attempt to blame his country for the
attacks was “an escape from facing the results of the
elections” held in June for the new parliament.

“It will be clear soon that those who target the U.A.E.
are the same ones who reject the elections’ results and
institution-building,” he said.